Light in the darkest hour… On the latest full-length dispatch under his dedicated guise for ardkore-leaning dance music, Paul Woolford expands the world of the Special Request project beyond the confines of the rave to include field recordings of cracking icebergs, 20+ year old tape archives and microtonal elements. Right off the bat, opener Chrysalis suggest the early works of Richard D. James have been in heavy rotation on Woolfords turntable, with a naive, microtuned analog synth lead gently chugging along beneath the impending doom of a looming glacial soundscape. The album marks a major shift away from the stretched breaks and pressurized sub bass that typified previous Special Request releases, and many standout moments on LP 1 and 2 channel that narrow apex (err, aphex?) where jungle and breakbeat hardcore meet acid house and techno: Tiresias, Adel Crag Microdot, Curtain Twitcher, Scrambled In LS1. There are a few slices of signature Special Request rave bashment yet; check out Make It Real, Brainstorm, Leviathan and Light In The Darkest Hour on LP 3 and 4. Presented by the good folks at Houndstooth (the record-releasing arm of LondonnightlifeinstitutionFabric) in a stunning gatefold sleeve featuring a reproduction of Auguste Rodins sculpture The Gates Of Hell (depicting a scene from Dantes Inferno) with code for digital download.

• 4x vinyl pressing
• gatefold sleeve
• digital download included
• music label: Houndstooth 2017

reviewed by frau farbissina 10/2017